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Eng y12 > English Literary Techniques > Flashcards

English Literary Techniques Flashcards

1
Q

Allegory

A

A story with a double meaning, it is an extended metaphor where objects, persons and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings outside of the narrative. It could have moral, social, religious or political significance

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2
Q

Allusion

A

A brief but purposeful references, within a literary text, to a person, place, event, or to another work of literature.

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3
Q

Alliteration

A

The repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purpose is to provide an audible pulse that gives a piece of writing a lulling, lyrical, and/or emotive effect.

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4
Q

Analogy

A

A literary device that explains an unfamiliar or complex topic by comparing it to a familiar topic

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5
Q

Anecdote

A

a short, self-contained story that usually highlights one particular theme, lesson, or aspect of a person’s character

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6
Q

Antropomorphism

A

the attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman objects.

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7
Q

Apostrophe

A

refers to a speech or address to a person who is not present or to a personified object

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8
Q

Assonance

A

the repetition of vowel sounds in words that are close together in a sentence or verse

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9
Q

Consonance

A

refers to the repetition of consonant sounds in successive words

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10
Q

Contrast

A

when two or more different or oppositional ‘things’ are deliberately placed to accentuate their differences.

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11
Q

Dialogue

A

any communication between two characters

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12
Q

Diction

A

choice of words, especially with regard to correctness, clearness, or effectiveness.

Includes:

Formal, informal, colloquial and slang

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13
Q

Formal Diction

A

Formal diction is the use of sophisticated language, without slang or colloquialisms. Formal diction sticks to grammatical rules and uses complicated syntax—the structure of sentences.

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14
Q

Informal diction

A

Informal diction is more conversational and often used in narrative literature. This casual vernacular is representative of how people communicate in real life, which gives an author freedom to depict more realistic characters.

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15
Q

Colloquial Diction

A

Colloquial diction is conversational in nature and can be seen through the use of informal words that represent a specific place or time.

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16
Q

Slang Diction

A

Slang diction contains words that are very specific to a region and time, and have been recently coined.

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17
Q

Emotive Language

A

language designed to target an emotion – positive, negative, sometimes deliberately neutral – and to make the audience respond on an emotional level to the idea or issue being presented

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18
Q

Enjambment

A

the continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line of poetry to the next.

(typically in poetry)

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19
Q

Form

A

a way of categorizing literature based on its structure or purpose.

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20
Q

Foreshadowing

A

a narrative device in which suggestions or warnings about events to come are dropped or planted

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21
Q

Flashback

A

interrupts that chronological sequence, the front line action or “present” line of the story, to show readers a scene that unfolded in the past.

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22
Q

Truncated sentences

A

Short sentences

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23
Q

parataxis

A

the placing of two clauses next to one another without the use of subordinating conjunctions or coordinating conjunctions to clarify the relationship between the clauses.

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24
Q

parataxis

A

the placing of two clauses next to one another without the use of subordinating conjunctions or coordinating conjunctions to clarify the relationship between the clauses.

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25
Q

Hyperbole

A

a figure of speech that is an intentional exaggeration for emphasis or comic effect.

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26
Q

Imagery

A

Imagery refers to mental pictures in your mind, or to words and descriptions that create mental pictures.

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27
Q

Visual Imagery

A

It uses qualities of how something looks visually to best create an image in the reader’s head

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28
Q

Gustatory Imagery

A

imagery related to the sense of taste

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29
Q

Tactile imagery

A

Tactile imagery is used to describe something by focusing on aspects that can be felt or touched.

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30
Q

Auditory imagery

A

This form of poetic imagery appeals to the reader’s sense of hearing or sound.

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31
Q

Olfactory Imagery

A

Olfactory imagery engages the sense of smell.

32
Q

Abstract imagery

A

the language we use to describe qualities that cannot be perceived by our five senses

33
Q

Irony

A

whenever a person says something or does something that departs from what they (or we) expect them to say or do

34
Q

Juxtaposition

A

Juxtaposition is when you place two concepts or objects next to or near each other, thereby highlighting their innate differences and similarities.

35
Q

Metaphor

A

Metaphor is a comparison between two things that are otherwise unrelated.

It makes a comparison by directly relating one thing to another unrelated thing

36
Q

Metonymy

A

figure of speech in which the name of an object or concept is replaced with a word closely related to or suggested by the original

For example, ‘crown’ to mean ‘king’ - the power of the crown was mortally weakened

37
Q

High Modality

A

Expression of something being certain

38
Q

Low Modality

A

Expression of something being uncertain

39
Q

Motif

A

a repeated pattern—an image, sound, word, or symbol that comes back again and again within a particular story.

40
Q

Onomatopoeia

A

the naming of a thing or action by imitation of natural sounds

I.e. Hiss or Buzz

41
Q

Paradox

A

a statement that appears to contradict itself but upon further inspection reveals a deeper truth, meaning, or joke

42
Q

Pathetic Fallacy

A

the attribution of human emotion to inanimate objects, nature, or animals. Writers use the pathetic fallacy to evoke a specific mood or feeling that usually reflects their own or a character’s internal state.

It is typically the attribution of human emotions to the environment. I.e. the rainy weather is a pathetic fallacy for a gloomy mood

43
Q

First Person narrative

A

The telling of a story in the grammatical first person in the perspective of ‘I’ –> reveals individual experiences

44
Q

Second person

A

In second person point of view the reader is part of the story. The narrator describes the reader’s actions, thoughts, and background using “you.” It’s all about how you look at it.

Creates a sense of a collective experience

45
Q

Third person

A

The voice of the telling appears to be akin to that of the author him- or herself. Any story told in the grammatical third person without using ‘I’ or ‘We’

Could be used to convey both collective and individual experiences

46
Q

Repetition

A

the use of the same word or phrase multiple times

47
Q

Rhyme

A

The repetition of syllables, typically at the end of a verse line

48
Q

Satire

A

the art of making someone or something look ridiculous, raising laughter in order to embarrass, humble, or discredit its targets.

49
Q

Simile

A

a type of figurative language that describes something by comparing it to something else with the words: ‘like’ or ‘as’

50
Q

Symbolism

A

the idea that things represent other things

I.e. colour red symbolises anger

51
Q

Syntax - sentence structure

A

the set of rules that determines the arrangement of words in a sentence. It can be used to convey the personality of the narrator

52
Q

Complex syntax

A

Can be used as a marker for high education. Implies a narrative voice that is well educated

53
Q

Simple syntax

A

Might be an indicator for lower education, as might fragmented or incomplete syntax

54
Q

Tense

A

Tense is a grammatical category by means of which some natural languages express the temporal location of the event described by the sentence in which the grammatical tense occurs

55
Q

Tone

A

the attitude that a character or narrator or author takes towards a given subject.

56
Q

Zoomorphism

A

to assign animal qualities to a non-animal subject, like a human being, inanimate object, or idea.

57
Q

Personification

A

a type of metaphor that describes non-humans’ looks, actions, and purposes with language typically reserved for human characters.

58
Q

Anaphora

A

The repetition of words or phrases in a group of sentences, clauses, or poetic lines.

59
Q

Synecdoche

A

figure of speech in which a part represents the whole

For example, ‘wheels’ refers to a vehicle - Nice wheels you have there

‘Hired Hands’ - workers

‘The captain commands one hundred sails’ - Sails is used to refer to ships, and ships being the thing which a sail is a part of

60
Q

Vignette

A

a literary device that bring us deeper into a story. Vignettes step away from the action momentarily to zoom in for a closer examination of a particular character, concept, or place.

61
Q

Dramatic Irony

A

When the audience knows more than the character.

62
Q

Soliloquy

A

a monologue that is delivered when the character is alone.

63
Q

Euphemism

A

a word or phrase that softens an uncomfortable topic. It uses figurative language to refer to a situation without having to confront it.

For example, if someone was recently fired, they might say they are between jobs, a common euphemism for being unemployed.

64
Q

Jargon

A

Potentially confusing words and phrases used in an occupation, trade, or field of study.

Useful in characterisation of the individual

65
Q

Dialect

A

form of writing that shows the accent and way people talk in a particular region

66
Q

Double entendre

A

phrase that expresses double meanings, the purpose of using double entendre is usually to articulate one thing perfectly and indirectly.

67
Q

Oxymoron

A

it is a rhetorical term that describes words or phrases that, when placed together, create paradoxes or contradictions.

68
Q

Extended metaphor

A

a version of metaphor that extends over the course of multiple lines, paragraphs, or stanzas of prose or poetry

69
Q

Cumulative Listing

A

a sentence that begins with an independent clause and then adds subordinate clauses

Essentially, you use words, phrases, and clauses to expand on or refine the main idea of the sentence.

For example, ‘Today, I had to go shopping, eating, singing, play sports and even more!’

70
Q

tricolon

A

a rhetorical device involving three words or groups of words with the same grammatical structure, such as three nouns or three prepositional phrases or three sentences.

For example:

‘We cannot dedicate. We cannot consecrate. We cannot hallow. ‘

71
Q

Linear Structure

A

A linear or chronological structure is where the story is told in the order it happens

72
Q

Non linear Structure

A

A non-linear plot is a storytelling technique in which a narrative is told out of chronological order.

73
Q

parallel plot

A

Parallel storylines – also called parallel narratives or parallel plots – are story structures where the writer incorporates two or more separate stories

74
Q

Diptych structure

A

Two different themes discussed in a narrative?!

75
Q

Power of three

A

The ‘rule of three’ in writing is based on groups of three items being more memorable, emotionally resonant, and persuasive than simply one or two.

Eng y12 (7 decks)

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